Two-Edged Sword | Bible Study

I am a writer. I have written a book and it would be a dream come true to get my book into the hands of millions of people in hopes that the things I shared in my first book will impact their life in a meaningful way. We all have read a book or story or news article and long after we set the periodical down, we are touched, changed, or impacted for good or bad. My favorite book to read and re-read does that. It has me laughing, crying, questioning, and ever-learning. It is the Holy Bible. This best-seller is a powerful book. It is the Holy Word of God and it impacts the reader every single time. Even if you disagree or don't fully understand it, you can never be the same after reading God's Word. This is how it is explained in Hebrews:

HEBREWS 4:12 For the Word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. 

The scripture says it is quick which means alive! The Bible is definitely alive. It is an amazing book that has layer after layer of meaning and wisdom. It is timeless. It is not outdated, but is relevant regardless of the age in which it is read. It is full of life because it is authored by the Life-Giver: God! Those who pray for wisdom to understand the Scriptures, will be able to connect with the God of the Word and through Jesus His Son, have life-everlasting.

Hebrews says it is powerful! That is so accurate. It is full of power to change those who dare crack the cover and consume the content. It has the power to change lives, situations, events, and hearts. It can change your destination. The Bible tells us exactly how to change our ways to line up with God's expectation of us!

The Bible is sharp! The words in the Bible will cut you so deeply, that the writer of Hebrews said it is more sharp than any two-edged sword. The Bible is a divisive tool. It cuts going in and cuts going out. Merriam-Webster defines doubled-edged sword as "something that has or can have both favorable and unfavorable consequences." The Bible meets that definition to the letter!

The Bible is so precise that it divides the soul and spirit. The soul is different than the spirit. God dwells in our spirit. Our self, who we are, is in our soul. The spiritual sword will slice between who we are and who God says we are. It is so sharp it separates the bone and marrow. The marrow is inside the bone, so the thought of something capable of separating them tells us what God's Word will do. It divides the very deepest parts of who we are. It is so sharp and exact that it separates the very thoughts from the intentions of the heart. That's a powerful tool!

Why would God's Word divide soul and spirit, joints and marrow, and thoughts and intentions? The truth of God's Word penetrates our hearts and comes alive. It changes us and causes us to see when we are doing the things that pleases God and when we are not. It's the tool God uses to transform us into His image.

Last week I shared three free Bible study resources with you and this week I am sharing what it is we are actually studying. I am looking forward to next week's Bible study when we will once again dive into the Scriptures and break the bread together. I hope you have been encouraged to study God's Word and dig deeper into the mysteries of His Truth.

God bless you!

~Bridgett Owens